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Pre-history
The prehistoric period in the history of Velgarth encompasses the tumultuous events of the Mage Wars and the Cataclysm. Please note: This information was compiled by MerlynPrime, who has been adding to it as time allows. The notes, surrounded by asterisks (**), are his. You can find him on Facebook, or on Twitter (@JoshuaWMurcray). 1100 BF After the Adepts began to surface from all of the Journeymen Mages, the first Great Work occurred when magic was “used to enrich an eroded floodplain, while the baron’s men built levees to make use of the renewed soil.” (Under the Vale and Other Tales of Valdemar: "Under the Vale") This involved a little less than 60 journeymen level Mages and a single Adept. (Under the Vale and Other Tales of Valdemar: "Under the Vale") One of the journeymen was a young Mage named Urtho. (Under the Vale and Other Tales of Valdemar: "Under the Vale") 1095 BF Urtho, now an Adept, begins holding “movable feasts” that travel from village to city, that were actually “salons” where Mages would gather together and share Notes on their spells and other works. These “salons advanced magical theory to a level that might have taken a century more, had they not flourished.” (Under the Vale and Other Tales of Valdemar: "Under the Vale") 1090 BF Urtho develops a set of “weights and measures” for magic use. (Under the Vale and Other Tales of Valdemar: "Under the Vale") Ma’ar was born in Predain. Also known as Mage of Black Fire. (The Black Gryphon: Chapter One) **I’m placing this event here as it gives time for Ma’ar to grow up and become an Adept, but still be younger and not as experienced as Urtho.** 1089 BF Urtho becomes known as the Mage of Silence due to his ability to only use enough energy to get the job done and no more, so none can be detected by other mages. (Under the Vale and Other Tales of Valdemar: "Under the Vale") 1085 BF Animal Husbandry, enhanced by magic, becomes a new trend of the Adept world. This is called “uplifting.” (Under the Vale and Other Tales of Valdemar: "Under the Vale") By this time Adepts are numbered in the scores and are as influential as kings. (Under the Vale and Other Tales of Valdemar: "Under the Vale") Khal Herta, an Adept, begins “uplifting” the hertasi. The hertasi were mild-tempered reptiles, available in large quantity, living fairly simple lives. They could be described as semi-sentient at this time when Urtho engages in the practice that an even dozen of his peers have. Hertasi had simple structures, organized hunting and fishing, and rudimentary medicine. (Under the Vale and Other Tales of Valdemar: "Under the Vale") 1080 BF Khal Herta dies and his work is passed to Urtho. With the hertasi, Urtho takes the approach of increasing the intelligence of hertasi social leaders, and encouraging them to breed with their subordinates, and then increasing the intelligence of their offspring. It creates a surprisingly seamless acceptance among the hertasi for those who are far smarter than any had been before. Part of the uplift, however, is also instilling in the hertasi that they should be appreciative for what they had become. This lives on, into the current timeline, as the unstoppable helpfulness the hertasi as a whole have. Even the grouchiest hertasi knows that they “owe” Urtho and his descendants for having as good a life as they do. (Under the Vale and Other Tales of Valdemar: "Under the Vale") **I’m placing this event here as it is stated that Urtho’s peers have already done things like this. Therefore time has passed since this new “fad” in the magic industry has had some time to show others how “cool” it is.** 1070 BF The Mage Wars begin. (Under the Vale and Other Tales of Valdemar: "Under the Vale") 1050 BF Urtho’s army starts losing land in the Mage Wars. The Black Gryphon: Chapter One states that Urtho’s armies have been losing border towns for half a generation. Brightbird was one of Amberdrake's family that was lost during the chaos that erupted while he was away at College of Chirurgeons in Predain at the age of thirteen. 1002 BF Skandranon Rashkae faces Adept Kiyamvir Ma’ar for the first time. (The Black Gryphon: Chapter One) 1000 BF The Cataclysm **Hypothesis: I’m guessing that the date 1000 BF is the actual date when Urtho's Tower and Ma’ar’s headquarters in the Royal Palace of Tantara were destroyed.** Era of the Black Gryphon General Corani had been assigned at Stelvi Pass until now. (The Black Gryphon: Chapter One) Six Days Later Skandranon Rashkae volunteers to scout out the enemy army and to try and capture the new magical weapon. (The Black Gryphon: Chapter One) Five Days Later Premonitions and nightmares among the more sensitive and marginally Gifted among the Healers and kestra’chern awaken them to the knowledge that Urtho’s army had lost Stelvi Pass. (The Black Gryphon: Chapter One) One Day Later Skandranon (Skan) arrives at the Pass of Stelvi spying on the enemy. (The Black Gryphon: Chapter One) Laisfaar is now the enemy army’s quarters. (The Black Gryphon: Chapter One) Skan infiltrates the camp and kills the Weaponsmaster. He captures a new weapon that had been used to take Stelvi Pass earlier. (The Black Gryphon: Chapter One) Skan is chased by six makaar and the makaar leader, Kili. (The Black Gryphon: Chapter One) General Corani is being treated by kestra’chern Amberdrake. He is usually treated by Riannon SilKedre. (The Black Gryphon: Chapter One) Healer Tamsin and Lady Cinnabar are on night duty for the next ten days. (The Black Gryphon: Chapter Two) The Next Day Skan makes it back at camp badly injured & having swallowed the magical weapon. It is pre-dawn. (The Black Gryphon: Chapter Two) Several Hours Later Amberdrake wakes up after helping heal Skan and goes to see him. (The Black Gryphon: Chapter Two) Later in the Afternoon Amberdrake (Drake) seems to wonder why he’s thinking of Winterhart even though he’s never met her. (The Black Gryphon: Chapter Three) At Sunset Urtho comes to visit a convalescing Skan. (The Black Gryphon: Chapter Three) Skan thinks that no one knows Urtho's race or age. He could be 60 or 600. (The Black Gryphon: Chapter Three) **Hypothesis: It is later suggested that Urtho was a Kaled’a’in clan member at one time since he referred to them as "my Kalade’a’in."** Loren asks Urtho to reward a gryphon. (The Black Gryphon: Chapter Three) Zhaneel first mentioned – killed three makaar all by herself. (The Black Gryphon: Chapter Three) Urtho awards Zhaneel with a Gold Token. (The Black Gryphon: Chapter Three) Half-a-Day Later 300 people plus Errold & Master Thomas Gate away. (Sun in Glory and Other Tales of Valdemar: "Errold's Journey") Next Day Urtho’s Tower and Ma’ars Citadel explode and Master Thomas & Errold see the flash. (Sun in Glory and Other Tales of Valdemar: "Errold's Journey") **According to the official maps, Errold's Grove is in the northern part of Valdemar. This means the flash they see is actually that of Ma’ar's Citadel and not Urtho’s Tower. The curvature of the world would not allow them to see the flash of Urtho’s Tower and the flash of Ma’ar's Citadel would have blocked out any light from the Tower** Half-an-Hour Later The Mage Storms hit the shields and change magic forever. (Sun in Glory and Other Tales of Valdemar: "Errold's Journey") The Mage Storms last for a day. (Sun in Glory and Other Tales of Valdemar: "Errold's Journey") Several Days Later Errold meets Proouw, a change-cat of human intelligence. (Sun in Glory and Other Tales of Valdemar: "Errold's Journey") Two Days Later They find the spot where they build Errold’s Grove. (Sun in Glory and Other Tales of Valdemar: "Errold's Journey") 999 BF Skandranon and his people arrive at the cliffs that they will make into their home, White Gryphon. 996 BF Around this time (several years after the Cataclysm) the remaining nine tribes of the Kaled'a'in returned to the site of Urtho's Tower, finding only a vast blackened crater. They met to discuss their next move, eventually dividing over the continued use of magic in an event known as the Sundering of the Clans. The remaining four clans prayed to the Star-Eyed, who agreed to provide a homeland in exchange for blood. The voluntary deaths of all four clan shamans in the First Sacrifice resulted in the creation of the Dhorisha Plains. 990 BF It has been ten years since the magical Cataclysm.Category:History